PHILADELPHIA - At this hour, several hundred "Occupy Philadelphia" protesters remain at Dilworth Plaza at the foot of Philadelphia's City Hall building.

They've voiced intentions of remaining there indefinitely.

The local branch of the "Occupy Wall Street" effort going on in New York City and around the country began their sit-in protest here more than 12 hours ago.

Tents have been erected and chants are commonplace, both for communication purposes and as rally cries.

The mass that has gathered in downtown Center City have an ideology aligned with those in New York - that there is a huge economic gap between American's middle and upper class citizens and government, big business and corporations are to blame.

Swetman estimated 10 to 15 such "committees" exist for all sorts of purposes regarding protest organization. The occupiers plan to convene again Friday at noon and 7 p.m.

Belmawr resident and high school senior Nickolas Boker plans to arrive at the protest Friday. He told The News in an e-mail late Thursday that he's from a "poor household, financially, and we're just about being kicked out of our home.

America doesn't have to be like this. America can be the prosperous beacon of light

Staff photo by Greg AdomaitisU.S. Navy veteran R.W. Dennen, who served from 1956 to 1960, at the Occupy Philadelphia protest late Thursday.

in the world it was meant to be, but people with nefarious intentions steal from this country," he continued.

A large majority of the protesters are youth, though some like U.S. Navy veteran R.W. Dennen said he saw the shift toward today's current political and economic attitude during the Regan era.

Temple University political science Professor Daniel Chomsky said earlier Thursday that these protests are a "long overdue response to the stagnation of incomes for ordinary Americans over a long period."

When asked what this movement means for the current administration in Washington, he said it is "an indictment of the Obama administration's failure to seriously confront unemployment, eroding incomes and corporate power."

Food stations have been set up, police presence remains minimal and groups continued to meet and organize.